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A SYSTEM 
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CHAPTER 
BOOKKEEPING 





. By 
John L. Kind 








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A SYSTEM 


OF 


CHAPTER BOOKKEEPING 


By 
JOHN L. KIND 


1913 








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PREFACE 


This book of instructions and the system of bookkeeping that it 
accompanies are launched on their course with many misgivings on my 
part. Conditions vary locally; in fact, there are perhaps no two chap- 
ters in which conditions are identical. It is the hope, nevertheless, that 
this uniform system of accounting will result in absolutely uniform man- 
agement, modified only by immutable, local exigencies. Some years of 
experience in supervising chapter accounting have convinced me that 
few chapters have an adequate conception of chapter financing, few 
have a suitable and adequate system of accounting, and most have been 
at the mercy of inexperienced treasurers who have had no guide to better 
knowledge. I realize that it may require years of arduous labor to 
accomplish fully the purposes of systematic accounting and supervision, 
and only the hearty co-operation of the chapter treasurers will ever lead 
to success. I feel just as convinced that there is a great demand 
and need for such a system, and that the chapters will profit greatly 
by its use. 

This system may bear resemblances to other special systems, but 
it is entirely my own, as presented. I have not allowed myself to be 
diverted in carrying out my plans. 

The directions and instructions are very explicit and detailed, in 
fact, so explicit, that the system may seem at first sight to be very 
complicated. A study of the forms and book of instructions will soon 
convince the treasurer of the simplicity of the system. 

I wish to take this opportunity to thank Brother W. K. Sullivan, 
Treasurer of Beta Gamma Chapter, for his generous assistance and 
helpful advice. He has offered me many very valuable suggestions. 

Joun L. Kinp, T'reasurer. 
Madison, Wisconsin 


February 1, 1913 


INTRODUCTION 


Altho this system of bookkeeping is especially designed to meet the 
requirements of chapter accounting, the underlying principles are those 
of double-entry bookkeeping. 

The system divides the finances of the chapter into three funds: 
the HOUSE FUND, the TABLE FUND, and the GENERAL FUND. 
It is absolutely necessary to distribute resources and liabilities according 
to these three funds. The maintenance of the house proper is recorded 
in the HOUSE FUND. The TABLE FUND is concerned with the 
table only; whereas, the GENERAL FUND covers all the special 
assessments, etc., on which there is presumably no profit or loss. 

HOUSE FUND. The receipts of this fund are: assessments for 
room rent, chapter dues, initiation fees, fines for delinquency or other 
causes, etc. ‘Therefore, the liabilities of the fund are: house rent, 
heat, light, service, etc., those charges that are necessary for the main- 
tenance of the house, after subtracting the proportionate amount of 
these charges for the maintenance of the dining room. The initiation 
fees payable to the National Treasury are also liabilities of the HOUSE 
FUND, since the initiation fees receivable from initiates are placed in 
this fund. Thus, also, fines for delinquency to the National Treasury 
are liabilities of this fund, since all fines assessed against the active 
members by the chapter are resources of the fund. 

TABLE FUND. The resources of this fund are: regular board, 
extra meals, and other charges against members for food. This fund 
must, therefore, provide for the purchase of all provisions, fittings, 
and furniture for the dining room, as well as for repairs. The idea 
in table management that will be the greatest innovation is the charge 
against the TABLE FUND of rent, light, heat, fuel, and service used 
for the dining room. Unless the receipts of the TABLE FUND are 
sufficient to cover all these items, the table is maintained at a financial 
loss. All profits on board should be placed in the HOUSE FUND at 
the close of each fiscal year. All losses on the table, on the other hand, 
should be covered by special assessment at the end of each semester. 

GENERAL FUND. AIl assessments that are not regular charges 
for the maintenance of the house or table are placed in this GENERAL 
FUND. These are: all special assessments for rushing, social func- 
tions, and outside activities, such as inter-fraternity bowling and base- 
ball leagues, charities, etc. Likewise, the Annual Dues and the Division 
Dues which are collected by the active chapter treasurer for the National 
and Division treasurers, belong to this fund. All profits of the GEN- 
ERAL FUND should be closed into the HOUSE FUND at the close 
of each fiscal year. 


THE FORMS AND THEIR USE 


THE SYSTEM. Forms A, B, and C are auxiliaries.t Forms X 
and Y are balance sheets, and they also serve as regular periodical 
reports to the supervising officer of the Arch Chapter. Forms D, E, F, 
and G comprise the bookkeeping proper. Forms D and E are the 
Ledger, Form F is the Cash Book, and Form G is the Journal. Forms 
D and E should be placed together in one binder, and Forms F, G, X, 


and Y should be kept in a second binder, for convenience in posting. 


FORM G (JOURNAL)? 


The Journal is the regular Form for use in making corrections and 
in adjusting accounts. If, for example, an item has been charged or 
credited to the wrong fund or account, the corrections should be made 
thru a Journal entry, debiting and crediting the proper funds or 
accounts according to the nature of the error. This Form is also used 
in closing out accounts at the close of the fiscal year. 

The special use of this Form, in this system, is to provide a con- 
venient blank on which to distribute regular and special charges against 
the members, and to make up their regular monthly statements. For 
this latter purpose the specially ruled right-hand half of the Form is 
used. The fixed charges against members, such as room rent, dues, 
board, etc., are compiled according to the chapter by-laws governing 
these charges. Special assessments, extra meals, and the like, are com- 
piled from the chapter minutes, reports of the steward, or other special 
officers who have charge of special departments, such as rushing, ban- 
quets, etc.* The totals of the columns are posted to the credit of the 
ledger accounts with the three main funds, and the ledger accounts 
with special accounts.* 

Having compiled the charges against members on Form G in this 
manner, the treasurer will enter these charges on the debit side of 


FORM D*® 


This Ledger Form (D) is a record of the charges against, and the 
cash payments by the members. The assessments against members are 


* The check book is also an important auxiliary, but no special form is provided 
in this system. See “Special Suggestions”, p.18. 

*See Plate G. 

%See “Special Suggestions”, p. 14, 

* For example, the total of the assessments against members for the House Fund 
are posted to the credit side of the ledger account with the House Fund (Form E). 
See “Special Suggestions”, p. 15. The items in the distribution of charges should be 
entered in the order in which they are arranged in Form X. This will also facilitate 
the compilation of Form X at the end of the month. 


5 See Plate D, 
5 


distributed according to the three funds, but the cash payments made by 
the members are not so distributed. Pencil footings may be taken at 
-any time desired, but the account of each member should be regularly 
balanced in ink at the close of every month. 


All cash received from members, having been posted to the debit 
side of the Cash Book from duplicate receipts (Form B),‘ are posted 
from there to the credit side of the member’s account on Form D. The 
assessments against a member may be entered as “sundries” on the debit 
side of his account, relying for details upon the distribution on Form G 
(Journal), where the accounts against members were compiled and to 
which reference is made in the L. F. column; or the various items may 
be entered in detail from the page of the Journal where the distribution 
was originally made.® 


FORM A® 


The use of this Bill Form is left to the discretion and convenience 
of the treasurers. Some will find it convenient to make out these bills 
to hand to members at regular intervals, especially on the first of 
every month. Others may prefer to dispense with the use of bills, and 
to allow members to consult their accounts as entered on Form D. 
If the details are not carried out on Form D, the “sundries” may be 
seen on the Journal page to which reference is made in the L. F. 
column. Form A, if employed, should be made out directly from the 
members’ accounts on the debit side of Form D, if the distribution has 
been made there, otherwise from the distribution of assessments in the 
Journal. The bills issued should be numbered consecutively, and the 
number of each bill should be entered in the column marked “Bill No.”, 


on Form D. 


* The bills receivable from members are distributed to facilitate posting to the 
credit side of the ledger accounts with funds and special accounts, and to assist in 
the compilation of Form X. The credit side can not conveniently be distributed by 
funds, owing to the fact that members do not always pay the full amount of a month’s 
assessments in one payment, and thus a distribution of these payments would nec- 
essarily depend upon the arbitrary judgment of the treasurer, and the adjustment of 
the unpaid balances still due the various funds at the end of each month would 
entail more labor than the record is worth. For the main point, after all, is to 
know the total amount still receivable from each member at any time. 

7See explanation of Cash Book, p. 8. 

§ Accounts with pledges, and current accounts with alumni, as well as accounts with 
delinquent alumni are also kept on Form D. When a member leaves college owing 
the chapter money, his account should be placed at once among the delinquent 
alumni immediately after the accounts with the actives, pledges, and current alumni 
accounts. 

*See Plate A. 


FORM B?° 


The consistent use of this Form (receipt) is absolutely essential to 
success. No treasurer should rely upon his memory alone for a record 
of money paid him. Nothing is more dangerous, or more liable to lead 
to serious errors and losses.** Payments of cash are posted from the 
duplicate receipts to the debit side of the Cash Book (Form F), and from 
there to the credit side of the remitter’s ledger account (Form D). 

The payments are not itemized, for the reason given in Note, p. 6. 
A separate receipt must be issued in duplicate for each payment, and 
each receipt so issued must be numbered, and the number placed in the 
column marked “Rec’t No.”, on the debit side of Form F, and on the 
credit side of Form D. These receipts must be made out in duplicate 
with the use of carbon paper, the white copy (original) being handed 
to the remitter, the yellow copy (duplicate) being retained in the 
booklet as a permanent record. If by any chance a blank is spoiled, 
it should be marked “void”, and neither the original nor the duplicate 


should be removed from the book. 


FORM C’” 


The consistent use of this Form (voucher) is likewise absolutely 
essential to success. ‘The treasurer should, under no circumstances, pay 
out chapter funds, except on such voucher properly approved by the 
president and secretary, or by the members of the finance committee of 
the chapter. 

» As soon as a bill is rendered against the chapter, it should be 
vouchered, if the details of the bill are correct, and the voucher should 
be approved by the proper officers. The proper distribution of expense 
charges against the funds should be entered both on the reverse side 
of the voucher and on the stub. If the bill can not be paid at once, 
it should be filed with the voucher. When the bill is paid, the voucher 
should be numbered to correspond to the number of the check drawn 
to pay the bill. | 

In case the bill consists of various items, it is not necessary to copy 
them on the face of the voucher. In such a case, enter on the face 
of the voucher “For sundries as per attached bill (s)”, and file bill (s) 
attached to voucher. Small expenditures for stamps, etc., should be paid 
by the treasurer personally, who, upon rendering detailed account of 
such expenditures, should make out a voucher to himself, have it 


1 See Plate B, 

“Form B is made of such a size as to render it impossible to carry the book 
in one’s pocket. See “Special Suggestions” on the treasurer’s office, p. 13. 

See Plate C. 


7 


approved by the proper finance officers, and then let it go thru the reg- 
ular routine. 

All bills, immediately upon their receipt and approval by the finance 
officers, should be entered upon the credit side of the creditor’s ledger 
account (Form E) with the proper distribution of charges against 
funds, being sure to enter the number of the voucher in the column 
marked “‘Vouc’r No.”, after the voucher has been paid and nun 
(See second paragraph above under Form C.) ie 

All cash paid out should be entered at once upon the pnkrap side of 
the Cash Book (Form F), and from there should be posted to the 


— side of the creditor’s ledger account (Form E).?8 
th 


FORM E** 


This Ledger Form is for use in keeping accounts with all mer- 
chants and other creditors, as well as in keeping accounts with the funds 
or special accounts, e. g., initiation fees, fines, repairs, social functions, 
college activities, etc., for which definite charges have been made against 
the members, and which may be subject to profit or loss.‘° The credit 
side of a creditor’s account and the debit side of the account with funds 
or special accounts are posted from the distribution made on the voucher 
or voucher stub; whereas the debit side of a creditor’s account is posted 
from the debit side of the Cash Book, and the credit side of the account 
with funds or special accounts is posted from the debit side of Form D. 

Pencil footings of ledger accounts may be taken at any time, but 
balances in ink should be made at the end of each month, in the case 
of regular accounts, and as often as seems advisable, in the case of 
accounts not so frequently used. 


FORM F*® 


This is the regular Cash Book. All money received is entered on 
the debit side of the Cash Book, all money paid out is entered on the 
credit side. The receipt number and the voucher number should always be 
entered immediately in the columns so marked. 

Receipts of cash should be entered from the duplicates of Form 
B, giving date of receipt. The payments of cash should be entered from 
the vouchers or voucher stubs, giving the date of payments. The cash 
receipts should be posted at the same time to the credit of remitter on 


%8'The treasurer must be careful to enter the proper distribution of charges by 
funds on both the reverse side of the voucher and on the stub as well as on the 
credit side of the creditor’s account (Form E). 

4See Plate E. 

% See “Special Suggestions”, p. 17, 

1° See Plate F. 


Form D, and the expenditures should be posted to the debit of the 
ledger account of the person receiving the money (Form E). 

Pencil footings to balance the Cash Book may be made at any time. 
but the Cash Book must be balanced in ink at tthe close of each month, 
and at that time the bank book should also be balanced. 


FORM X*" 


This Form should be filled out at the close of each month, audited 
by the finance committee, and a copy sent to the supervising officer of 
the Arch Chapter. This shows that officer the charges made against 
each member for the current month in detail, also the balances due 
or credits carried over from the preceding month, amounts paid during 
the current month, as well as the balances due or credits forwarded 
at the end of the month.1® The items of the various columns are 
posted from the distribution of charges against members on Form G, 
from which the ledger accounts with members were posted (Form D), 
with the assistance of the debit side of Form D. Actives should be listed 
first, then pledges, then alumni living in the house, or having regular 
current accounts for board, room, etc. Alumni not having regular 
current accounts are not listed on Form X, but on the special blank 
for “Delinquent Alumni’, since their accounts are not current assets. 

The sum of columns 1 to 8 should be entered in column 9. In 
colymn 10 is entered the balance due from the preceding month, and 
the amounts here entered against members should correspond exactly to 
the amounts that appear in column 14 of the report on the preceding 
month. Column 11 is the sum of columns 9 and 10. The amounts 
--entered in column 12 should correspond exactly to the amounts that 
appear in column 15 of the report on the preceding month. Columns 
10 and 12 are mutually exclusive of each other, Column 14 shows 
the amount that each member still owes at the end of the month, and 
column 15 shows the amount that a member has paid in advance of 
the total charges against him. Columns 14 and 15 are thus also mutu- 
ally exclusive of each other. | 

For convenience in referring to these columns in his correspondence, 
the supervising officer of the Arch Chapter will designate them: X-1, 
X-2, X-3, etc. 


“See Plate X. 

*% The Totals at the bottom of the page should always be entered by the treas- 
urer, thus showing the total money receivable, received, etc., for the month covered 
by the report. 


9 


FORM Y?® 


This Form should also be filled out each month, audited by the 
finance committee, and a copy sent to the supervising officer of the 
Arch Chapter. This is a complete record of the chapter’s liabilities. 
This form is divided into two parts. The upper part (A) is for record 
only, and the entries in column 3, 4, and 5, in this part of the report, 
should be carried down to part B, columns 2, 3, 4, and 5, on the line 
marked “Current Liabilities brought down from A’’.?° 


In part A, column 1 contains the original amount of the indebted- 
ness, column 2 the unpaid balance on the first of the month, column 3 
the amount of the unpaid balance due during the current month, column 
4 the amount paid during the current month, column 5 the unpaid bal- 
ance at the end of the month of the amount that was due during the 
month, and column 6 the total unpaid balance of the original indebted- 
ness. 


In part B, in column 1 should be listed all the unpaid bills that 
were carried over from the preceding month, and so the items in this 
column should correspond exactly to the items listed in B-5 of the report 
on the preceding month. In column 2 are entered all the items of 
expense incurred during the current month. The sum of columns 1 and 
2 is entered in column 3. The amounts paid during the current month on 
the chapter’s liabilities are entered in column 4, so that the unpaid lia- 
bilities at the end of the month appear in column 5. In column 6 are 
carried out any payments to creditors in advance of the total amount 
due them (B-3). Thus, columns 5 and 6 are mutually exclusive of each 
other.”* 

The Totals should always be filled out by the treasurer. 

Care should be taken in entering ‘“‘Advance Payments by Actives.” 
Money paid in advance to the chapter is a liability of the chapter. 
Column Y-B-1, in the case of these advance payments, should contain 
the total of column X-15 of the report on the preceding month. Column 
Y-B-2 should contain the total of the advance payments made durmg 
the current month in excess of the charges entered against members 
in column X-11. Column Y-B-3 is the sum of columns Y-B-1 and 
Y-B-2. Column Y-B-4 is the total of the advance payments of the 

1 See Plate Y, 

* Items in A-3 will be entered in B-2 and B-3, unless the treasurer desires to 
specify how much of the item due this month was carried over from the preceding 
month, and how much is the indebtedness of the current month. 

1 Even in the case of servants. If the chapter has paid one servant in advance, 
as is often the case, and there is a greater amount due the other servants, service 


will be entered in column 5. If the advance paid to any servant is greater than the 
amount owed to other servants, service will be entered in column 6. 


10 


preceding month used up during the current month in liquidating assess- 
ments; whereas, column Y-B-5 shows the amount of the advance pay- 
ments entered in column X-15 for the current month.?? 


FORM Y—SUMMARIES 


In SUMMARY I, item 1 is taken from the Cash Book as balanced 
on the last day of the preceding month. This amount should, thus, 
be the same as reported in Summary III-1 in the report of the preceding 
month. I-2 is the total of X-13. I-3 is the total collected from delin- 
quent alumni who are reported on the special “Delinquent Alumni” 
blank, and whose accounts do not appear on Form X.?* JI-4 and I-5 
are taken from the Cash Book for the month. I-6 is the sum of 
]-1-2-3-4-5. I-7 is the total of column Y-B-4. I-8 is obtained by sub- 
tracting I-7 from I-6. ‘The cash on hand must actually be in the 
possession of the treasurer, i. e., either in the bank or cash drawer, or 
both. 

In SUMMARY II, item 1 is the total of Y-B-1. II-2 is the total 
of Y-B-2. II-3 is the sum of II-1 and IJ-2, and is also found as the 
total of Y-B-3. II-4 is the total of Y-B-4, II-5 is obtained by subtract- 
ing II-4 from II-3, and is also the total of Y-B-5. 


In SUMMARY III, item 1 is brought down from Summary I-8. 
III-2 is the total of Y-B-6. III-3 is the total of column X-14. III-4 
should be taken from the proper ledger accounts, if any such resources 
exist. The sum of these four items gives III-5. III-6 is Summary II-5 
brought down. Subtracting III-6 from III-5 gives III-7. Then the 
bills receivable from delinquent alumni are entered as III-8, and by 
adding III-8 to III-7, III-9 “Grand Balance” is obtained. 


SUMMARY IV is made up as follows: The assets of the HOUSE 
FUND are the sum of the totals of columns X-1 to X-5, the assets of 
the TABLE FUND are the total of column X-6, and the assets of the 
GENERAL FUND are the sum of the totals of columns X-7 and X-8. 
The total of the assets of the three funds is placed in the column 
marked “Total”, this last figure then showing the total of the assets 


** Thus, if a member has credit for $50 in X-12 and is charged with $45 in X-11, 
he has not used up all his credit, and X-15 will show that he has a credit of $5 at 
the end of the month. In this case no entry is made for him in Y-B-2, since he has 
paid nothing during the current month. On the other hand, if his credit in X-12 is 
$50, and he is charged with $45 in X-11, and pays $5 during the month, column X-15 
will show him with a credit of $10, but only $5 of this will be entered in the amount 
of Y-B-2, i. e., the amount that he actually paid in during the current month, in 
advance of the charges against him. 


* The alumni collections entered in I-3 are compiled from the ledger accounts 
with the alumni (Form D), and these payments also appear in the Cash Book. 


11 


of the three funds for the month covered by the report, and this figure 
is, therefore, the same as the total of column X-9. 

The liabilities of the HOUSE FUND are made up by adding all 
the items entered under HOUSE FUND in column Y-B-2. Likewise, 
the liabilities of the TABLE FUND and the GENERAL FUND are 
obtained by adding the items in the same column as charged against 
these two funds respectively. 

The “Advance payments by actives” are not included in Summary 
FY. 

This brief summary of profit and loss will show how much money 
was ASSESSED for each fund DURING THE MONTH OF THE 
REPORT, and the amount of the liabilities that were INCURRED by 
each fund DURING THE MONTH OF THE REPORT. Thus, 
the ‘Total’? column shows the total resources and the total liabilities of 
the chapter for the MONTH OF THE REPORT, and the very last 
items of the summary will reveal the profit or loss in each of the three 
funds, as well as the profit or loss of the chapter as a whole for the 
MONTH OF THE REPORT. 

Form X can be filled out immediately after the close of the month, 
as soon as the accounts of the actives, pledges, and alumni have been 
balanced for the month covered by the report. An effort should be made 
to have all bills for liabilities of the chapter rendered by the creditors 
immediately after the close of each month. It should be possible 
to complete Form Y by the fifteenth day of the following month. A 
copy of both Forms X and Y should be retained in the treasurer’s book 
and a copy sent to the supervising officer of the Arch Chapter, no 
later than the fifteenth day of each month. 

For convenience in referring to items in Form Y in his correspond- 
ence, the supervising officer of the Arch Chapter will designate the 
columns as: Y-A-l, Y-A-2, ete., Y-B-1, Y-B-2, etc., Summary I-l, 
I-2, ete., Summary II-1, II-2, etc., etc. 


12 


SPECIAL SUGGESTIONS 


The Constitution of the Fraternity provides for the election of a 
treasurer and an assistant treasurer in each chapter. Any further 
division of financing, such as steward, house committee, rushing com- 
mittee, etc., is left entirely to the chapters, according to their local 
needs. All these officers, in as far as they have to do with the receipts 
and expenditures of chapter funds, are under the direct supervision of 
the treasurer. The treasurer and the treasurer only should receive 
and disburse chapter funds. The other officers should keep a careful 
record of their accounts, approve them, if correct, and refer them to 
the treasurer for collection or payment. Thus, all the financial trans- 
actions of the chapter must appear in the reports on Forms X and Y. 
The treasurer alone has the right to pay out chapter funds, and then 
only with the approval of the president and secretary, or of the finance 
committee as officially attested by the voucher forms. THE TREAS- 
URER IS THE SUPERIOR FINANCIAL OFFICER AND HE IS 
RESPONSIBLE FOR THE FINANCIAL WELFARE OF THE 
CHAPTER. 


The special rules and laws on the financial relations of the chapter 
treasurer to the treasurer of the Arch Chapter are printed on the second 
page of the monthly Enrollment Report blank. 

A competent sophomore should, if possible, be elected to the office 
of treasurer, so that he may serve in this important capacity for at 
least two years. He should be chosen for his ability as a financier 
and not on the basis of his popularity, nor because he needs financial 
assistance himself, in case the chapter allows the treasurer some reim- 
bursement for his services. 


The chapter should provide the treasurer with a desk and other 
furniture, such as filing cases, etc., for the proper conduct of his work. 
This should be regarded as his official office, and the treasurer should 
make all the financial transactions in this office. If a member desires 
to make a payment, he should consult the treasurer in his office, where 
all the records are kept, and where the proper entries can be made at 
once, : 

The treasurer and, in fact, every chapter officer should preserve 
carefully all correspondence and other documents pertaining to their 
_ offices, and they should preserve copies of all important letters and 
other documents issued from their offices. 

The treasurer should post his books at the close of each day. This 
practice will greatly lighten the burden of the office and the labor of 


13 


keeping up this system of books. The assistant should be expected to 
do his daily share of the work. 


THE CHAPTER MINUTES AND BY-LAWS 


Every chapter should enact by-laws covering and governing the 
regular assessments for room rent, dues, initiation fees, board, etc. All 
special assessments, late and extra meals, etc., should be assessed against: 
the members according to the weekly reports of the steward and other 
special officers of the chapter, and all these assessments must be recorded 
in the minutes. In fact, the chapter minutes should be a complete 
record of all changes in membership, all financial and other transactions.. 


THE CHAPTER BUDGET 


At the beginning of each fiscal year, the finance committee should 
make up a budget for the ensuing year, based upon the experiences of 
past years and the conditions that are likely to obtain during the 
ensuing year. A copy of this budget should be submitted to the super- 
vising officer of the Arch Chapter on the regular blank form provided 
by that officer. 

The regular income of the chapter as apportioned to each fund 
should be sufficient to cover the expenses of each fund—all other 
expenses should be covered by special assessment voted at the time the 
expenditure is voted by the chapter. As soon as it is shown by the 
ledger accounts with the three main funds, or the special accounts, that 
the assessments as provided for in the annual budget are not sufficient, 
the assessments should be readjusted, and the supervising officer of the 
Arch Chapter should be notified of the changes at once. Economy should 
be the slogan at all times. A chapter should never spend money, just 
because it is in sight. It should be the aim and desire of every chapter 
to save as much money as possible each year, whether the chapter is 
already paying off obligations on its own house or lots, or is planning 
for a house in the future. Every chapter should have a building 
fund and should figure on a profit on the running expenses to aug- 
ment this building fund. All profits on the TABLE FUND and GEN- 
ERAL FUND should be closed into the HOUSE FUND at the close 
of each fiscal year, and the profits thus realized on the three funds 
should be placed in the building fund. 


THE TABLE FUND 


The proportion of house rent, light, heat, and service that is needed 
for the maintenance of the dining room should be determined at the 


14 


time of compiling the annual budget; for it is very important that the 
income of the TABLE FUND, as determined in the annual budget, be 
sufficient to cover the “over head” charges of the dining room, so that 
the table is not maintained at the expense of the house. 

Meals for guests, who are not official guests of the chapter should 
be charged against the members introducing the guests, at a regular 
schedule of prices. 

Steward’s fittings are such things as table linen, etc., that are not 
permanent fixtures. Dishes may be classed as either fittings or furni- 
ture, according to the likely permanency of the supplies. An original 
purchase of a set of dishes, or silverware and glassware might well 
be considered furniture; whereas, articles purchased later to replace 
parts of the broken set might be classed as fittings. 


DISCOUNTS 


It should be the aim of each chapter to select a regular grocer, 
butcher, coal dealer, dairy, etc., that will make the lowest prices; and 
it should be the aim, further, to secure a discount from these merchants 
on all bills paid by a certain date, say, the tenth day of the following 
month. A careful record of these arrangements for discounts should 
be kept for the guidance of succeeding treasurers. 

The winter’s supply of coal should be contracted for in the summer 
at«summer prices, and arrangements made for delivery as the chapter 
needs the coal. It is often possible, likewise, to buy the winter’s supply 
of potatoes and other food stuffs in large quantities. Often, further, 
some alumnus is in the grocery business, and he should be willing to 
supply groceries at wholesale rates. 

It should be the aim of the treasurer, in apportioning special assess- 
ments, to give the chapter the benefit of the doubt, i. e., to charge each 
member a little more than the net proportionate amount needed to 
cover the expense of the item for which the assessment was made, so as 
to guard against possible losses, and to make a small profit for the 
treasury ; for a few cents added here and there are not felt by the mem- 
bers, and the profit to the chapter in the course of the year will assist 
materially in augmenting the building fund. 

Loans of chapter funds may be made to members for short periods, 
at reasonable rates of interest. These loans must not be made for the 
purpose of liquidating obligations to the chapter itself. Loans should 
be made sparingly and carefully; for the practice is one that may very 
easily be abused. 


No allowance for rebate on board should be made for less than a 


15 


half week, and no rebate should be given on room rent for less than a 
full month. The chapter should strive to have every place in the house 
and at the-chapter table occupied at all times. Members living out of 
the house should be required to pay a parlor tax in addition to the 
regular dues, and they should be required to make up any deficit in room 
rent occasioned by their failure to live in the chapter house. Pledges 
residing in the chapter house should also be charged a parlor tax, in 
order to compensate the chapter for the loss of regular chapter dues. 


THE ANNUAL HOUSE RENT 


The house rent, or the fixed charge which the chapter pays its 
corporation annually for the use of the house, should be divided into 
the number of college months and not into the twelve calendar months. 


REPAIRS. 


Repairs may be charged to the HOUSE FUND, TABLE FUND, 
or GENERAL FUND, according as to whether there are special pro- 
visions for these repairs in the assets of the HOUSE FUND or TABLE 
FUND, or not. If not, repairs must be covered by special assessment 
and carried in the GENERAL FUND. Members should always be 
charged for damage done to furniture thru carelessness, rough-housing, 
etc. 


PURCHASES 


A careful record should be kept of all purchases made. The 
treasurer should insist upon having a purchase slip rendered with all 
goods delivered, and he must insist that all creditors render bills at the 
close of every month, whether the goods are to be paid for at that 
time or not. No one should be allowed to make purchases for the chap- 
ter without the authorization of the treasurer. Every purchase thus 
made should be reported to the treasurer immediately, together with a 
record of the amount involved. Chapters may find it convenient to draw 
up a regular requisition for these purchases. One of the greatest 
sources of financial embarrassment in many chapters every year is the 
failure of the treasurer to keep a record of purchases, and so bills have 
piled in at the close of the college year—and there was no money in 
the treasury to pay them. If care is taken, it will be possible for the 
treasurer to have documentary evidence in his possession, early each 
month, of all the accounts incurred by the chapter, so that Form Y 
can be promptly filled out from the system of books as posted to date. 


16 


THE SYSTEM 


In making entries, always remember the one basic principle: That 
which comes in is debtor to that which goes out. ‘Thus, in a member’s 
ledger account, as far as he is concerned, his account comes in, that is 
his debit; his cash goes out, that is his credit. In a merchant’s ledger 
account, cash comes in, that is his debit; his goods go out, that is his 
credit. In the Cash Book, the cash which comes in is the debit of cash; 
the cash that goes out is the credit of cash. Such accounts have to do 
with cash. In the case of the ledger accounts with funds and special 
accounts, however, we are dealing with “paper” accounts, i. e., resources 
and liabilities on paper, quite apart from the payments of cash. Thus, 
the minute an assessment is made for a fund, that assessment becomes 
a credit to that fund and should be entered as such; and the minute 
an expenditure is authorized out of a fund, that becomes a liability of 
the fund, and should be so entered. The cash payments into and out 
of a fund are not entered in the ledger account with that fund. 

Special ledger accounts should be kept with each of the three 
main funds. It may be advisable, further, to keep a ledger account 
with such special accounts as- initiation fees, fines, repairs and furni- 
ture, rushing, social functions, etc-—accounts in which one wishes 
to trace profit and loss. These can be most easily posted at thé end of 
the month from Forms X and Y. The extent to which a chapter carries 
these special ledger accounts depends upon the ingenuity of the treas- 
urer and the size of the chapter budget. Time should not be wasted 
in keeping accounts, if they do not serve a practical purpose in assist- 
ing the chapter to see how various important accounts are running as 
to profit and loss. 

The booklets of receipt blanks (Form B) and of vouchers, (Form 
C) should be plainly numbered on the front cover, so as to prevent con- 
fusion and the loss of these original records. 

The bookkeeping forms should all be paged in order. If John 
Brown’s ledger account is paged 1 and 2, and it becomes necessary 
to insert another sheet to finish out the year, this second sheet should 
be paged 2a and 2b. This system of pagination will prove a great 
convenience and is one of the great advantages of the loose-leaf system. 

In Form D, whether the assessments are itemized or not, the total 
of the assessments for each fund should be entered in the column of each 
fund. | 

In Form E, under the heading “For what incurred”, it is best to 
itemize the bills, altho even here it is perfectly feasible to rely upon 
the distribution as made on the voucher and voucher stub, to which ref- 


17 


erence is made in the column marked “Vouc’r No.”, for details of the 
items. Under the heading “Fund charged”, it is not necessary to item- 
ize the entries ; the total of the charges against each fund should always 
be carried out in the proper columns. 

For both Forms D and E, it will be found very advantageous to use 
a sheet of the Cash Book (Form F) as an index to the accounts. 

A rubber stamp should be used to fill in the name of the chapter, 
wherever that is required on the various forms. Unless the check book 
of the chapter is printed with the name of the chapter, a rubber stamp 
should be used in signing checks, e. g.: 


Beta Gamma Chapter of Delta Tau Delta 


The bank account is to be carried in this form, in the bank approved 
by the chapter, not merely in the name of John Brown, Treas., and 
above all not in the name of John Brown. The money belongs to the 
chapter and must be deposited in the name of the chapter, otherwise the 
treasurer is personally liable for all losses occasioned by the’ failure 
of the bank, etc. 

The number of the voucher must always correspond to the number 
of the check drawn to pay it. A check on chapter funds can be drawn 
only to pay an approved voucher. Cancelled checks should always be 
filed with the receipted vouchers. 


THE FISCAL YEAR 


The fiscal year begins with the opening day of the college year and 
closes on the last day of the summer vacation. After the first partial 
month of the fiscal year, the fiscal month coincides with the calendar 
month. Forms X and Y will, in the first report of the fiscal year, cover 
the period from the opening day to the close of the first full calendar 
month; the last report of the college year will cover the period from the 
first day of the last full calendar month to the closing day of the col- 
lege year; and the last report of the fiscal year will cover the period 
from the closing day of the college year to the last day of the summer 
vacation. ‘Thus, this last report of the fiscal year will cover the finan- 
cial transactions of the summer vacation. 


SEMESTER REPORTS 


It will also be found advantageous to make out Forms X and Y 
for each semester or term. For these reports the word “semester” or 
“term” will be substituted for the word “month” on the Forms. 


18 


ANNUAL REPORTS 


At the very close of the fiscal year a report should be compiled 
for the entire fiscal year just closed. Such a report will include all 
the financial records of both semesters (or the three terms), and also 
of the summer months. 

In the case of all these reports, monthly, term, and annual, the 
books and reports should be audited by the finance committee of the 
chapter, and the members of this committee must place their “OK” on 
Forms X and Y in the space provided for this attest. 


THE ANNUAL AUDIT 


The chapter books and financial records should be audited at the 
close of the college year by the supervising officer of the Arch Chapter, 
and at such other times as that officer may deem expedient. For such 
audit the chapter treasurer will send to that officer ALL records and 
original vouchers, including: duplicates of receipts (Form B), vouchers 
and voucher stubs (Form C), cancelled checks, bank book as balanced 
to date, check book with all stubs properly filled out, and all used sheets 
of Forms D, E, F, G, X, and Y, filled out completely and balanced. 


ANNUAL INVENTORY 


. Every chapter should take an annual inventory of all assets and 
properties at the close of the fiscal year. ‘This should include all assets 
already compiled in Form X of the annual summary, all provisions and 
supplies, furniture and fittings, stocks and bonds, etc., etc. The proper 
amount should be written off for depreciation. 


Nore—The term ‘‘dining room’’ wherever used means, of course, the space occupied 
by dining room, pantries, kitchen, etc. 


19 


SYNOPSIS OF ENTRIES 


A 


E(credit of fumds and special accounts) 


(paper) 


x 
B(cash} > F(debit of cash}——>~D(credit of members) 


E(debit of funds and special. accounts) 


G(distribution ae of members) 










PAPER 






—> E(credit of merchants )———>y 





F(eredit of cash)}——_» re of merchents) 


F(balanced} 


D( debit Summary I 
Y- 


Y-B-1-2-3-4-5———-> Summary II 








Xe1-2-3—4-5-6-7-8—__ 





Y-B-2— > Summary IV 


It will readily be seen, from this synopsis, that Form G, where 
the charges against members are distributed, is the “port of entry” of 
all assets that are to be accounted for. From this Journal distribution 
are made up the Bills (Form A), is posted the credit of the funds and 
special accounts in the Ledger (Form E), the debit of members (Form 
D), and is also compiled Form X. 


20 


Form B (receipts for cash) is the “port of entry” of all cash re- 
ceived. The payments of cash are posted to the debit side of the 
Cash Book (Form F), from there to the credit of members (Form D), 
and from there to Form X. 

Form C is the “port of entry” for all bills incurred. These bills, 
as paper accounts, are posted from Form C to the debit of funds and 
special accounts; also, as paper accounts, to the credit of merchants 
and other creditors Form E, and from there to Form Y; also, as cash 
accounts, to the credit side of the Cash Book (Form F), and from there 
to the debit side of the accounts with creditors (Form E), and from there 
to Form Y. 

The sources of the items entered in Summaries I, II, III, and IV, 
are also graphically shown here. 


21 


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